Lost and Found
by MysticSorceror
Summary: Based before "the play ended". When Isuzu Sohma was six years old she met a young boy who she cared for very deeply, three year old Hatsuharu Sohma. Can Isuzu help Haru? How will Black Haru affect their "friendship"? RinXHaru, KaguraxKyo,
1. Chapter 1

**Author Note: You know they say that writing is therapeutic, well that's what I'm doing it for. I don't promise anything, but I hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket**

Isuzu felt the sand between her toes as she played with Kagura in the sandbox, the two of them had just started school and had instantly joined together. They were both girls. They were both of the Sohma family, and more than that, they were both cursed. Isuzu leaned back, her dress flowing freely on her free spirited, five-year-old body. "Do you think that we should make the castle bigger?" she asked gently, gesturing to the top.

Kagura gasped, pressing both of her hands to her mouth, "Wow, you're right Isuzu! We need to make it bigger! Hey, maybe your doll can keep watch, I can't believe how attached you are to her. You're five now Isuzu, that's too old to be carrying around dolls." She stared at the sky and then thought to herself how many turrets she should make, it really did make a difference whether it was four or six turrets.

"I like her!" Isuzu replied, holding her doll tightly, "Mama gave her to me." Jumping up she grabbed Kagura's shoulder and lightly held her arm, "Come on, I want you to show me how to draw eggs in the sand! You said it was fun!"

"Well Kyo, the cat, said it was fun; to me it's pretty silly," she laughed, obviously not caring too much about Kyo's feelings; he was the cat after all, he might not even have true feelings. Picking up a twig she walked over to Isuzu, bent down, and then

SMACK!!

Both girls' eyes widened greatly, they could hear someone attempting not to cry and they looked around to hear where it came from. Kagura looked around, half bored by the sound, but, Isuzu jumped up, curious to know where that sound had come from. "That crying, someone's hurt, we should help them Kagura-chan!" Hearing the sound Isuzu dashed out of the area.

"Isuzu! Get back here! We should tell the sensei!" Kagura yelled chasing her, she was stopped dead as the two viewed the crying boy before them. Kagura's stomach gave in as she looked at the small white haired boy with the huge red mark on his face. He looked familiar, had she seen him before somewhere? Was he part of the Zodiac?

"Please don't cry," Isuzu spoke gently, her heart reaching out for the small boy, he was so defenseless and his mother didn't love him the way hers loved her. Kagura instantly slapped a hand over Isuzu's mouth and pulled her back so they could watch; the mother hadn't noticed yet.

"Just listen," Kagura whispered to her as the two of them heard what the mother was saying.

"So now Hatsuharu! So now you know what you get," she told him, glancing down at him in a very strict manner, "Do you get why you're never going to get into the best private schools, or why Yuki is always talked about. Why Yuki is closest to Akito's side?"

The three year old didn't speak, he tried to dry the tears off with the back of his hand. He gripped to his arm, trying very hard not to embarrass his mother and then heard another girl laughing at him.

"Look at his hair!" she yelled at him, "It's so funny!"

Haru shuddered as he heard that, he looked down trying his hardest not to cry, he didn't want to hear that he had humiliated his mother, he didn't want to hear his mother and father talking about how some girl noticed Haru's hair and then like someone stupid he had cried. He had already humiliated his mother at lunch with her friends and their "uncursed" children when he held his menu upside down. That story was probably going to circulate for a long time. "Mama," he whispered, grabbing her leg, "Can we go home?"

He looked up and then silently freaked out, his mother was already talking to someone else, he had been forgotten about again. Taking a deep breath he looked at his mother and heard all the usual jokes she made about how weird he was, about how different he was. "Mama," he tried again and then found his mother to walk away.

"Hatsuharu, you know your way back home don't you?" she asked with a fake sense of kindness as she walked off not even bothering to look back at him and before Haru knew it she had disappeared with her new friend. He was alone now, Haru choked slightly, he was lost! Now that he was without his mother in this strange place he allowed tears to flow down his cheeks.

Isuzu gazed from behind the wall and then ran out to the young boy, she recognized him, maybe he was part of the Zodiac because his hair was so strange, but in case he wasn't she wouldn't hug him. "Are you alright?" she asked kindly, reaching down to him and found the small boy jump up, he stared at her shaking his head side to side.

"No, no, don't hug me! Don't hug me!" Haru yelled freaking out, that would be bad, for him to get hugged and memories having to be erased. Still, before he knew it, Isuzu had taken him in her arms and was holding him, she sighed relieved. "You are animals too?" he asked looking at Kagura and Isuzu. He felt warm and secure in Isuzu's arms as she rubbed his back.

"Yep," Kagura laughed, rocking back and forth on her toes, "I'm the boar and Isuzu's the horse, you're Hatsuharu the ox right?"

Haru looked down, he screwed his face up trying hard to keep himself from crying and gave a weakened nod. "Cow," he spoke softly, before shaking due to his overwhelming emotions, he kept everything bottled up, but here in Isuzu's arms he found a new source of strength, he wanted this kind of strength forever.

"I like cows," Isuzu smiled at him, she held him tightly and Haru cried until her blouse. Suddenly the two of them were broken apart as the sensei called. "Sensei," Isuzu spoke before looking to Haru and then to the teacher, she knew her parents weren't as bad as the other Zodiac's parents but she didn't want to disobey them. "I have to go, but we can play later at the Sohma Estate alright?" she asked as Haru held her hand.

"But, but I don't know my way home without mama," he tried to tell her, almost begging her to stay. Isuzu bit her bottom lip, her gaze alternating between the school building and the young three year old in front of her.

"I'll take you!" Kagura volunteered, "Isuzu, you go back to class! I'll take Haru-chan home," she grinned, grabbing Haru's hand and pulling him. Isuzu watched them go, smiling as she found Haru looking back to her. And then she remembered...her doll!


	2. Chapter 2

"Mama," Isuzu spoke softly as she dried the stack of dishes and set them straight in order to help out, "Someday I'll be able to do all the washing up and you won't have to do any," she beamed. The rain outside was falling quite hard and it was already pretty late. An unexpected thunder strike was seen in the distance and Isuzu flinched. "Mama, all the dishes are done," she laughed as her mother silently held them and nodded.

"You can go play in your room now Isuzu," she replied, calmly touching her daughter on the head. There was silence before the horse turned and walked into the hall to get her coat.

"No mama, the laundry, we left it outside, I need to go get it," Isuzu begged since she didn't want her mother to go without her clothes, afterall she had done so much work on them. Offering her mother a wide smile Isuzu dashed out and tried to get the clothes down as fast as she could. The rain causing her to be soaking wet, she shook her head due to the cold and attempted to yank down another shirt. She pulled at the material but when she opened her hand it wasn't there, she looked up just in time to see the shirt fly away.

"Mama!" Isuzu called finishing with the rest of the laundry, "I'm sorry it's so wet, one of Papa's work shirts blew away, I'm going to go get it," she told them as her mother handed her her umbrella, a few towels and a warmer coat. The girl laughed at her mother's care, it made her happy to notice the amount of love there was in her family. She nodded as her father opened the door and she went out with the umbrella.

After about ten minutes or so Isuzu felt herself getting cold, she shivered uncomfortably, "Shirt san!? Shirt-san!?" She sneezed, were her parents even expecting her to be out so late? She looked back and found her father standing there in the distance watching her, she grinned knowing that she wasn't alone.

As she continued along the road she caught sight of a little figure near a lamp post, she blinked confused and then ran towards him. The white haired boy stood up and pulled a shirt out from beneath his jacket, offering it to her, his greyish blue eyes blinked up at her. "Shirt-san got lost," he spoke passing it forward, under the light it had been obvious that this boy had a black eye and bruised cheek. There were also several scattered bruises on his body.

Isuzu gasped as she gazed at the small boy and grinned, "Thankyou Hatsuharu-kun, you saved shirt-san." She watched as the little boy blushed and so hugged him tightly, this caused her father to put a hand in front of his mouth as if he was going to vomit from the simple scene in front of him. Two cursed Zodiac children, no two freaks, one of which had his blood.

Haru wrinkled his nose and stuck out a chubby finger to the shirt, "Got wet," he sneezed as Isuzu tested his head. He was burning up and before she knew it there was a loud poof and a small calf flopped onto the ground splashing water all over the girl. He shivered under the cold and forced himself to stay awake his clothes soaked underneath him.

"Papa!" Isuzu called to her father running towards him. She stopped, confused to see the disgust on his face, maybe it was the bruises, those scared her as well. "Papa! We have to take Haru-chan home with us, he's sick!"

Her father looked at the calf and then stared down at his daughter, "He'll be alright, it'll stop raining soon." He pulled weakly on her hand before feeling her struggle, it appeared that she was determined to help the infant cow. "Isuzu, your mother wants you home," he told her hoping that at least they could pretend that was true.

"No papa, he doesn't have a mama and papa who love him like my mama and papa do," she touched Haru's nose giggling slightly when the rain started to clear up. Haru snorted onto her hand as he struggled to keep his breath. The young horse lay her cheek upon his back and started singing a song that would comfort him, it was then that she saw two of the older Zodiac boys. Why were they out here so late?

"Well well," Shigure, a lively fifteen year old commented rubbing his chin as he noticed the young girl and the ox, "Ha'ri, shine the light over here. I think we have a couple of animal crackers on the floor."

"What?" Hatori, a taller boy with blander appearance asked, he stared at the sky cursing the heavens for Shigure's comments like that but paused as he saw the painful marks on the calf's body. "Haru?" he questioned unsurely and then looked to the young girl, still holding his umbrella and torch, "Isuzu you can go home now if you want. I think Shigure and I can take care of him, incapable as he is."

Shigure blinked trying to act as if he was crying, it was the dog's jokes that Isuzu liked so much and the way he played with her. He was her 'Gure-nii! "Ha'ri do you have to be so cruel, I have perfect capabilities. I can't be that disposable since you haven't gotten rid of me yet."

"Yet," Hatori coughed highlighting the word, "That's what's important in that sentence, yet," he looked around smiling as the rain ceased to fall and for the first time saw Isuzu's father standing there. "Hello sir," he bowed, "I'm Sohma, Hatori you must be Isuzu's father. I saw you dropping her off to last years New Year banquet," he held his hand out professionally, he would always act older than his age.

The man stared at the boys hand disgusted and then spoke bitterly, "Dragon," he quickly turned his attention to his weird little girl, "Isuzu, we're going home now. Your "friend" will be taken care of by these boys."

"Oh..." Isuzu kept switching glances at each group and then nodded, "Okay papa. 'Gure-nii can you tell Haru-chan that I hope he feels better and that I'd like to play soon. Hatori onii-san how did he get hurt like that?"

Hatori froze he knew what it was, the main house often had arguments over the abuse of their Zodiac animal but his parents did physically abuse him. He didn't expect Isuzu to understand that. He felt himself sweat, glad for once that Shigure jumped in before he could answer.

"I'll make sure to tell him Isuzu, now you run on home," he laughed as Isuzu nodded, kissed Haru's nose again and went to take her father's hand walking off with him.

"I wonder how long that'll last," Shigure mused as he watched her leave, the older boys, at least the ones who cared about things other than themselves, Kureno, himself and Hatori knew that something was off concerning Isuzu's family. Ritsu didn't really think about such things, mind him being young himself and Aya was off in his own world. "Do you think it was his mother again."

"I don't know," Hatori replied sadly, "They all deny it, no matter whose fault it is."


End file.
